Carrots rarely get a mention when you're planning dinner. Give them ten minutes in a hot pan with butter, honey and Aniseed Myrtle, and that changes. The batons pick up colour in the pan first, then get tossed through a glaze until every edge turns glossy and faintly sticky - the kind of side people ask about.
Aniseed Myrtle is doing most of the work here. It's a rainforest leaf native to northern New South Wales, with a soft liquorice sweetness that has nothing to do with actual aniseed and everything to do with why it works so well against butter and honey. A single teaspoon is enough to carry the whole dish.
At a glance: Serves 6 as a side | Prep 10 min | Cook 15 min
What does Aniseed Myrtle taste like?
If you haven't cooked with it before, Aniseed Myrtle is worth seeking out. The flavour sits somewhere between fennel and vanilla - sweeter and rounder than star anise, without the medicinal edge some liquorice-style spices carry. It comes from specialty native food suppliers rather than the supermarket spice aisle, which is exactly why most people have never cooked with it, and why it's worth keeping in the pantry once you do.
We pair it here with raw Kunzea Honey from north-east Tasmania. Supermarket honey will get the glaze done, but Kunzea Honey brings a floral depth plain honey can't, and it's the ingredient that turns a simple pan of carrots into something worth talking about.
Honey glazed Aniseed Myrtle carrots
Serves 6 as a side
Prep 10 minutes
Cook 15 minutes
Ingredients
- 500g medium carrots
- 2 tablespoons (40g) butter
- 1 teaspoon Aniseed Myrtle
- 1 tablespoon (20g) Kunzea Honey
- ¼ teaspoon salt, for the cooking water, plus a small pinch for the glaze
- Native Blend Pink Lake Salt, to finish
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint leaves
Method
- Cut the carrots into batons: halve each carrot crossways, then cut each half lengthways into 4 sticks.
- Put the carrots and ¼ teaspoon of salt in a medium saucepan and cover with water. Bring to the boil, then cook a further 3 to 5 minutes until just tender. Drain and spread out on a plate to steam dry - dry carrots take colour far better in a hot pan than wet ones do.
- While the carrots dry, make the glaze. Combine the Kunzea Honey, butter, Aniseed Myrtle and a small pinch of salt in a small heatproof bowl. Microwave for 20 to 30 seconds, then stir until smooth.
- Set a large frypan over high heat. Add the carrots and fry for a couple of minutes until they start to pick up some colour.
- Pour in the glaze and keep the carrots moving, tossing for a few minutes until every stick is coated and the butter has cooked down into a sticky glaze.
- Pile onto a serving dish, spoon over any glaze left in the pan, finish with a small pinch of Native Blend Pink Lake Salt and scatter with the mint.
Getting the glaze right
Two things separate a glossy result from a wet, watery one. Dry the carrots properly after boiling - even a light coating of water stops them taking colour in the pan and waters down the glaze once it goes in. Then don't rush the glaze itself. The honey and butter need to bubble and thicken before they'll cling to the carrots, so if the pan still looks thin and runny, give it another minute of tossing over high heat rather than pulling it off early. You're looking for every stick coated and glossy, with just enough glaze left in the pan to spoon over the top.
Watch the heat once the honey goes in. Honey catches fast, and burnt honey turns bitter rather than caramelised, so keep the carrots moving and don't let anything sit still in one spot for too long.
Tips and swaps
- No Aniseed Myrtle on hand? Lemon Myrtle takes the glaze in a citrus direction instead - same quantity.
- Native Blend Pink Lake Salt is a flake salt. If you're finishing with fine salt instead, use about half as much.
- Parsnip batons work the same way - give them an extra minute in the boiling water before draining.
- Flat-leaf parsley can stand in for the mint if that's what the garden is offering.
Storage
Keeps in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat in a frypan with a small knob of butter to bring the glaze back to life - the microwave will get it hot, but the pan gets the glaze glossy again.
Shop the recipe
- Kunzea Honey (North-East Tasmania): raw Tasmanian honey that gives the glaze its floral depth.
- Native Blend Pink Lake Salt: a native blend of Pink Lake Salt, Mountain Pepperleaf, Saltbush, Kunzea and Native Thyme, to finish the dish.
Carrots this simple are worth keeping on repeat right through the cooler months, alongside a roast or on their own with a bowl of soup. Already know our Kunzea Honey roasted carrots? That one is the set-and-forget oven version; this is its stovetop cousin for the nights the oven is already busy with something else.
